where was the safavid empire located

The Safavid Empire was located mainly in what is now Iran , with its core regions centered on the Iranian plateau.

Core location

• The heart of the Safavid Empire was Persia, corresponding closely to modern-day Iran.

• Major Safavid capitals like Tabriz, Qazvin, and Isfahan were all in this Iranian core, serving as political and cultural hubs.

Wider territories at its height

• At its greatest extent, the empire also ruled areas that are now Azerbaijan, Armenia, eastern Georgia, and parts of the North Caucasus.

• It additionally controlled parts of present-day Iraq, Turkey, Syria, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan, tying together regions between the Ottoman Empire and Mughal India.

Simple way to remember

• Think of the Safavid Empire as an early modern Iranian state that dominated the region between the Ottoman lands to the west and the Mughal Empire to the east , with Iran as its solid core and neighboring areas under varying degrees of control.